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Jean Michel Jarre (2019)
Photo: Horacio Villalobos/Corbis/Getty Images
French electronic music pioneer Jean-Michel Jarre has sold his entire music publishing catalog to BMG.
The 73-year-old follows other artists who have recently ceded the rights to their music to corporations.
In a statement Thursday, BMG, owned by German media group Bertelsmann AG, said the acquisition was the largest single deal ever made by the group in France.
However, financial details were not disclosed.
The deal includes the publishing rights to Jarre's famous 1970s albums Oxygene and Equinoxe, as well as his author earnings.
"Jean-Michel Jarre is not only a groundbreaking pioneer of electronic music, he is a polymath and a shining ambassador for culture and internationality," said BMG boss Hartwig Masuch.
Jarre, who has sold 85 million records, is known for his impressive sound and light concerts, which he stages in spectacular settings such as the Eiffel Tower in Paris or the pyramids in Cairo.
His shows have at times drawn huge audiences, including 3.5 million spectators at his Moscow concert in 1997.
"Today is a fresh start that allows me to generate new ideas and explore new territories," Jarre said.
Last year, Justin Timberlake, Sting and Tina Turner, among others, signed a contract for their works.
Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen had also sold the rights to their works, the latter reportedly for $550 million.
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